T- puckering tartness up front gives way to some light and fruity flavors of apple and pear that continues into a juicy middle, highlighted by the oak barrel, which adds some woodsy and earthy flavors, the finish is bone dry and tart, with lingers of grape skin that becomes more apparent as it warms

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4.75/5 rDev +16.4%

Poured from a 330 into a standard pint (the tulip was dirty and I was lazy). The light haze in the gold was lovely. The aroma offered a hint of the sour to come with some citrussy character from a hoppy beer. But the taste was just a wonderful level tartness that was like nothing I had encountered. This is the beer that set me off on a long run of sours. It is therefore my benchmark since it was my first sour. I may revise once I have had more from this style, but this will be a repeat purchase.

Appearance  Poured a nice, thick, super-light orange with a terrific head that laced slowly down the glass.

Smell  Wonderful sherry-like aroma reminding me of my Alvears Cream. The oak scents come out as well. This has a beautiful, sweet and sour bouquet.

Taste  The acidic vinegar starts this one off, giving a slight sting in the mouth. This is followed by the deep sour backbone, heavily laden with table sugar. Towards the end some malt actually comes out. This is a good mix.

Mouthfeel  Exhilarating! This one will wake you up.

Drinkability  Ill give my bottom dollar to the guy that can chug this bottle. This is a sipping wine (I like it before dinner or late at night). It doesnt really go good with any foods, IMO. My penchant is to take this style on an empty stomach, preferably while sitting in front of the tube watching the Ms play ball.

2001 Vintage served up for just a couple bucks at Delilahs in Chicago in March of 2007.

I love Delilahs. Every time I go there I find new beers to try that have been aged at least 5 years. Always fun.

This one was exceptional.

Poured into my chalice a bright clear gold with small amounts of yeast present in the body and a thin white head on top.

Nose is loaded with oak tannins. Underneath them is a zest of lemon and grapefruit. These light fruit aromas are rotten and inviting, hinting at a geuze like sensation that is to follow. Vanilla, cherry, and earth play roles too.

Taste is highly acidic and funky. The yeast play a prominent role providing sour and tart fruit flavors while the oak rounds everything out. Feel is light, crisp, and very tart, mouth puckering tart. Semi candied and woody.

Very drinkable. Highly interesting mouthfeel does the trick. Lambic/geuze lovers should find this very appealing. I have to imagine that the age played a large roll in the development of this deeply crafted and almost intimidating level of character.

Petrus Aged Pale pours a golden, amber-ish and orange kind of color, a bit muddled in hue, although it has reasonably good clarity, save for a bit of chill haze at the start. The gray-tinted head doesn't stick around for a very long time, as it quickly descends into a skin that has trouble even spanning the top of the brew. No lacing, although it isn't exactly expected for this style of beer.

One sniff and you're hit with a good "one-two" combo of sour and funk; musky cellar and corky funk, complimented by a mirage of tart fruits, like apple skins, lemon zest, and a bit of white grape. Barrel character is highly integrated, too, with plenty of tannin and wet oak. The yeast provides a touch of clove-like spice and maybe even a bit of bubblegum - very characteristic of certain Belgian yeast strains. So far, I'm liking how things are going.

The brew carries a nice, even tartness throughout the entirety of each sip; the profile expands even more on the palate, opening up and bouncing around with a plethora fruits. Green apples, grapes, cherries, strawberry, and a touch of lemon zest in the end. Tart, but not quite puckering or sour, and very calm and mellow; no acidic burn, which is a good thing for my stomach lining. Vinegar as well as vinous notes are low, except for a heavy bit of oak that hangs around in the background, adding a nice level of complex dryness to the beer.

For a "sour" ale, this beer is balanced very well and has plenty of malt and even a touch of grassy hops to keep the tart-inducing yeast in check. I wouldn't call it "boozy" at 7.3% ABV, but the barrel aging does integrate a mild sherry and phenol-like alcoholic tone that beefs up an otherwise light-tasting Belgian sour. Medium bodied, even borderline creamy, although the high carbonation keeps it from being so. Finish is somewhat dry and a touch sticky.

Awesome beer here, and what's even better is that you can easily pick this stuff off of most shelves around town. Definitely a brew that's sour and funky enough to please long-time fans of the style, while remaining mild and tame enough to not scare newcomers away. Reasonably priced for the quality and amount as well; one of the better examples of blonde Belgian sours that are easy to obtain.

A: A light golden beer with excellent clarity and enthusiastic effervescent bubble streaming to the surface. The rocky white head fades after a minute leaving a ring of foam on the surface.

S: The Calvados oak barrel, a lactic sourness and a spicy dry hopped aroma blend together making for an inviting bouquet. There is a moderately-light vanilla and a very soft malt aroma in the background along with a mild apricot ester. No alcohol nor diacetyl noticeable.

T: Ummagumma that is tart! Intense sour tartness, crisp and dry. There isn't any hops flavor and little malt flavor to speak of in this beer. For as dry as it is there is still that sweet tart quality even though it's almost all tart. There doesn't seem to be that much hops bitterness either but the acidity make it seem like there is some. So the balance is almost completely sour and tart with a dry finish having a quick juicy somewhat fruity aftertaste. There are a light and bright fruit flavors and a little bit of spicy phenols.

M: A light bodied beer that is highly carbonated giving a bit of that carbonic dryness. No creaminess, no astringency nor warmth.

O: Sour fan Nirvana, this is a clean and intense sour beer with an awesome aroma. I haven't had a more sour beer that this and I'm loving it.

T/M: tang splashes up front, crisp and refreshing. some lactic tart and soft collide. straw, and the grainy hay in the nose come through midway mixed with a soft wood quality. the crisp acidity is a bit funky but restrained and massively interesting. some green apple and pear(?). mouthfeel is light and crisp as already stated, with a touch of creaminess. as the beer warms a tiny touch of sugar on the finish. long.

D: awesome on a warm day, with soft cheeses, roasted veggies, rich sauces, on and on...

i could go on and on about this very cool and unique beer but im gonna drink instead.

It pours a transparent marigold with a surprisingly lingering fluffy white head. After the head dies down a tight layer of bubbles crown the beer.

The nose is immediately has some lactic tartness and some white wine grape acidity. It's not over the top with the acidity but does have a little vinegar in there.

Taste has a strong lactic bite in the front that lasts throughout the taste. The pale color seems to translate to a more mellow malt character than other Flanders style beers. It also doesn't finish as sweet as other examples and has a fairly dry finish. While I like the dry finish I usually like a little more body in my Flanders style beers. Thats not to say this isn't a great tasting beer. I think it's really well done and I'm enjoying the hell out of it. Right out of the bottle the carbonation was a too high for my liking and gave an unneeded added acidity which corrected itself as it sat a while and became a little flatter.

The acidity level of this beer is on the higher side which is the only thing hampering it's drinkability. Overall I really love this beer and for $6.99 a 750mL it's a better bargain than Rodenbach Grand Cru, my benchmark beer in price/availability/taste.